RE: Car and Driver "Short Take Road Test"
The fuel economy ratings changed fo rthe 2008 model year. It was supposedly to reflect more "real world" application. Truthfully the previous ratings always appeared to be closest to reality in my opinion. My 2003 Cobra was rated at 16/22 and in fact I get 16 in the city and I regularly get between 22-23mpg on the highway. Of course I am driving with mileage in mind to get these figures but nothing outlandish either. My 2004 SRT-4 Neon was rated at 22/30 and I averaged between 28 and 34mpg on trips with it. The 2008 Mustang GT I just bought shows 15/23 with the "new" ratings. I haven't taken the mileage yet but can say with confidence it's definitely beating these figures, especially on the highway. The R/T Challenger I am looking to get is rated at 15/23 also with the 6 speed. I feel confident it will do better than this when driven easy. The EPA is figuring some lead foot driving in to get those numbers so in that sense it could be correct but everyone should fully expect to better those numbers if they drive for mpg's. With magazine tests I have found it very hard to put a lot of faith in the numbers the get. It will give you a general idea of what the car is capable of but that's it. Why the difference, not sure. It could be a number or combination of factors: driver, reaction, margin of error for testing equipment, traction, different cars, etc.